One-step synthesis and gas sensing characteristics of hierarchical SnO2 nanorods modified by Pd loading

The hierarchical unloaded and Pd-loaded SnO₂ nanostructures, consisting of many aggregative nanorods were prepared by one-step hydrothermal method. A possible formation mechanism of these hierarchical structures was proposed. The butanone sensing properties of the sensors based on unloaded and hierarchical Pd-loaded SnO₂ nanorods were investigated. The results indicate that the response of sensor using hierarchical Pd-loaded SnO₂ nanorods to 1000 ppm butanone was 451 at 250 °C, which was about 10 times higher than that of sensor based on unloaded SnO₂. Such enhanced gas sensing performances can be attributed to both the chemical and the electrical contribution of Pd loading.     

Influence of morphology and structure geometry on NO2 gas-sensing characteristics of SnO2 nanostructures synthesized via a thermal evaporation method

SnO₂ microwires, nanowires and rice-shaped nanoparticles were synthesized by a thermal evaporation method. The diameters of microwire and nanowire were 2 μm and 50-100 nm, respectively, with approximately the same length (∼20 μm). The size of nanoparticles was about 100 nm. It was confirmed that the as-synthesized products have SnO₂ crystalline rutile structure. The sensing ability of SnO₂ particle and wire-like structure configured as gas sensors was measured. A comparison between the particle and wire-like structure sensors revealed that the latter have numerous advantages in terms of reliability and high sensitivity. Although its high surface-to-volume ratio, the nanoparticle sensor exhibited the lowest sensitivity. The high surface-to-volume ratio and low density of grain boundaries is the best way to improve the sensitivity of SnO₂ gas sensors, as in case of nanowire sensor which exhibited a dramatic improvement in sensitivity to NO₂ gas.     

Ceria-doped SnO2 sensor highly selective to ethanol in humid air

In our earlier study, we reported that at 300 °C, a 2.0 wt.% CeO₂-doped SnO₂ sensor is highly selective to ethanol in the presence of CO and CH₄ gases [F. Pourfayaz, A. Khodadadi, Y. Mortazavi, S.S. Mohajerzadeh, CeO₂ doped SnO₂ sensor selective to ethanol in presence of CO, LPG and CH₄, Sens. Actuators B 108 (2005) 172–176]. In the present investigation, we report the influence of ambient air humidity on the ethanol selective SnO₂ sensor doped with 2.0 wt.% CeO₂. Maximum response to ethanol occurs at 300 °C which decreases with the relative humidity. The relative humidity was changed from 0 to 80% for different ambient air temperatures of 30, 40 and 50 °C and the response of the sensor was monitored in a 250–450 °C temperature range. As the relative humidity in 50 °C air increased from 0 to 30%, a 15% reduction in the maximum response to ethanol was observed. A further increase in the relative humidity no longer reduced the response significantly. The presence of humidity improved the sensor response to both CO and CH₄ up to 350 °C after which the extent of improvement became smaller and at 450 °C was almost diminished. The sensor is shown to be quite selective to ethanol in the presence of humid air containing CO and CH₄. The selectivity passes a maximum at 300 °C; however it declines at higher operating temperatures.     

Highly sensitive and fast responding CO sensor using SnO2 nanosheets

A highly sensitive and fast responding CO sensor was fabricated from a sheet-like SnO₂. The SnO sheets were prepared by a room temperature reaction between SnCl₂, hydrazine and NaOH, and they were subsequently oxidized into SnO₂ sheets at high temperature (600 °C). The morphology and size of the SnO₂ sheets could be controlled during the formation of SnO, which influence the sensor response (R_a/R_g) and response time to a great extent. The sensor response of SnO nanosheets to 10 ppm CO was enhanced up to 2.34, and the 90% sensor response time could be reduced to 6 s, which are significantly higher and shorter than those of SnO₂ powders (1.57 and 88 s), respectively. The realization of both a high sensitivity and rapid response were explained in terms of rapid gas diffusion onto the entire sensing surface due to the less-agglomerated and very thin structure of SnO₂ nanosheets and the catalytic effect of Pt.     

Effect of thickness of platinum catalyst clusters on response of SnO2 thin film sensor for LPG

This paper reports the sensing response characteristics of rf-sputtered SnO₂ thin films (90 nm thick) loaded with platinum catalyst cluster of varying thickness (2-20 nm) for LPG detection. The enhanced response (5 × 10³) was obtained for 200 ppm LPG with the presence of 10 nm thin and uniformly distributed Pt catalyst clusters on the surface of SnO₂ thin film at a relatively low operating temperature (220 °C). The high response for LPG is shown to be primarily due to the enhanced catalytic activity for adsorbed oxygen on the surface of SnO₂ thin film besides the spill over mechanism at elevated temperature.     

Influence of the measurement conditions on the sensitivity of SnO2 gas sensors operated thermo-cyclically

The conductance of several tin oxide gas sensitive layers was simultaneously measured in thermo-cyclic and isothermal operation mode at various concentrations of CO and propene in air, respectively. Different measurement conditions were set by the cycle time, the gas flow rate, the humidity and the thickness of the sensitive layer. The sensor response is expressed by the conductance-over-time profiles (CTPs), the gas sensitivity or by the sum of the CTP sampling points. The resultant sensitivities from the CTPs were found to be higher than those of the isothermal measurements. The CTPs considerably change with the kind of gas as well as with the variation of the measurement conditions. This is discussed for both types of target gases with respect to the temperature, the adsorbates assumed and the reaction kinetics in relation to the gas transport conditions in the porous gas sensitive layer.     

Enhanced room temperature response of SnO2 thin film sensor loaded with Pt catalyst clusters under UV radiation for LPG

The room temperature response characteristics of SnO₂ thin film sensor loaded with platinum catalyst clusters are investigated for LPG under the exposure of ultraviolet radiation. The SnO₂-Pt cluster sensor structures have been prepared using rf sputtering. Combined effect of UV radiation exposure (λ = 365 nm) and presence of Pt catalyst clusters (10 nm thick) on SnO₂ thin film sensor surface is seen to lead to an enhanced response (4.4 × 10³) for the detection of LPG (200 ppm) at room temperature whereas in the absence of UV illumination a comparable response (∼5 × 10³) could be obtained but only at an elevated temperature of 220 °C. The present study therefore investigates the effect of UV illumination on LPG sensing characteristics of SnO₂ sensors loaded with Pt clusters of varying thickness values. Results indicate the possibility of utilizing the sensor structure with novel dispersal of Pt catalyst clusters on SnO₂ film surface for efficient detection of LPG at room temperature under the illumination of UV radiations.     

High aspect ratio In2O3 nanowires: Synthesis, mechanism and NO2 gas-sensing properties

Flexural In₂O₃ nanowires with high aspect ratios were synthesized via a hydrothermal–annealing route. The as-synthesized In₂O₃ nanowires had diameters of 30–50 nm and length up to several microns. Various reaction parameters, such as the kind of reagents, the time of hydrothermal treatment, annealing time and annealing temperature, were investigated by a series of control experiments. The as-synthesized In₂O₃ nanowires showed excellent gas-sensing properties to NO₂ in terms of sensor response and selectivity.     

CuO/SnO2 thin film heterostructures as chemical sensors to H2S

CuO/SnO₂ heterostructures as well as SnO₂(CuO) polycrystalline films have been studied for H₂S sensing. Gas sensing properties of these materials have been compared in conditions: 25–300 ppm H₂S in N₂ at 100–250°C. A shorter response time of the heterostructures as compared to that of the SnO₂(CuO) films has been found. It is suggested that the improvement of dynamic sensor properties of SnO₂/CuO heterostructures is caused by the localization of electrical barrier between CuO and SnO₂ layers.     

Influence of Pd doping on morphology and LPG response of SnO2

In the present study nanocrystalline pristine and Pd-doped SnO₂ (Pd:SnO₂) with various mol% Pd have been synthesized by a modified Pechini citrate route. Transmission electron microscopy and X-ray powder diffraction studies were used to characterize the morphology, crystallinity, and structure of the SnO₂ and Pd:SnO₂. The response of the pristine SnO₂ and Pd:SnO₂ was studied towards different reducing gases. The 1.5 mol% Pd doping showed an enhanced response of 75 and 95% towards LPG at as low as 50 and 100 °C, respectively, which were quite large high value as compared with pristine SnO₂ (38 and 35% at 50 and 100 °C, respectively). Structural characterization revealed that Pd doping reduced the crystallite size of SnO₂ and helps in the formation of distinct spherical nanospheres at a calcinations temperature of 500 °C. Thus the increase in LPG response can be correlated with the spherical morphology, a decrease in the crystallite size (11 nm) due to doping with Pd as compared with the pristine SnO₂ (26 nm) and main role of Pd as a catalyst.     

CuO/SnO2-In2O3 sensor for monitoring CO concentration in a reducing atmosphere

The CO sensing property of CuO-loaded SnO₂-In₂O₃ sensor was investigated in a reducing atmosphere. The sensor response to CO for CuO/SnO₂-In₂O₃ (8/2) was much higher than that for CuO/SnO₂ in the range of 200-1000 ppm of CO concentration. Such a high sensor response of CuO/SnO₂-In₂O₃ may originate from the high dispersion of CuO playing a role as sensing site.     

Fast response chlorine gas sensor based on mesoporous SnO2

Mesoporous SnO₂ is obtained through a simple hydrothermal process by using tin chloride as a raw material, urea as a pore-forming agent and pH regulator. X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) nitrogen adsorption–desorption measurements are employed to characterize the obtained mesoporous structures. The results show that the as synthesized material after calcination can be well indexed to tetragonal phase SnO₂ with a mesoporous structure. The sensing properties of the sensor based on mesoporous SnO₂ are investigated. The results reveal that the response to dilute Cl₂ gas of the materials is very high and fast. The short recovery time mainly attributes to the bigger pore size of mesoporous SnO₂. Finally, the reaction mechanism is proposed.     

Ordered mesoporous Pd/SnO2 synthesized by a nanocasting route for high hydrogen sensing performance

Ordered mesoporous SnO₂ and mesoporous Pd/SnO₂ have been successfully synthesized via nanocasting method using the hexagonal mesoporous SBA-15 as template. Two different procedures, impregnation technique and direct synthesis, were utilized for the doping of Pd in the mesoporous SnO₂. The results of small angle X-ray diffraction (SAXD), nitrogen adsorption–desorption and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) demonstrate that the SnO₂ and Pd/SnO₂ display ordered mesoporous structures and high surface areas. Wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) reveal tetragonal structure of SnO₂ and the existence of Pd element. The sensing properties of mesoporous SnO₂ and mesoporous Pd/SnO₂ for H₂ were detected. The sensor utilizing mesoporous Pd/SnO₂ via direct synthesis method exhibits excellent response and recovery behavior and much higher sensitivity to H₂, compared to those using mesoporous SnO₂ and mesoporous Pd/SnO₂ via impregnation technique. It is believed that its high gas sensing performance is derived from the large surface area, high activity and well dispersion of Pd additive, as well as high porosity, which lead to highly effective surface interaction between the target gas molecules and the surface active sites.     

Electrostatic sprayed SnO2 and Cu-doped SnO2 films for H2S detection

This paper presents the ability of electrostatic sprayed tin oxide (SnO₂) and tin oxide doped with copper oxide (1, 2, and 4 at.% Cu) films to detect different pollutant gases, i.e., H₂S, SO₂, and NO₂. The influence of a copper oxide dopant on the SnO₂ morphology is studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) technique, which reveals a small decrease in the porosity and particle size when the amount of dopant is increased. The sensing properties of the SnO₂ films are greatly improved by doping, i.e., the Cu-doped SnO₂ films have large response to low concentration (10 ppm) of H₂S at low operating temperature (100 °C). Furthermore, no cross-sensitivity to 1 ppm NO₂ and 20 ppm SO₂ is observed. Among the studied films, the 1 at.% Cu-doped SnO₂ layer is the most sensitive in the detection of all the studied gases.     

Synthesis of novel SnO2/ZnSnO3 core-shell microspheres and their gas sensing properities

Large-scale novel core-shell structural SnO₂/ZnSnO₃ microspheres were successfully synthesized by a simple hydrothermal method with the help of the surfactant poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) PVP. The as-synthesized samples were characterized using X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). The results indicate that the shell was formed by single crystalline ZnSnO₃ nanorods and the core was formed by aggregated SnO₂ nanoparticles. The effects of PVP and hydrothermal time on the morphology of SnO₂/ZnSnO₃ were investigated. A possible formation mechanism of these hierarchical structures was discussed. Moreover, the sensor performance of the prepared core-shell SnO₂/ZnSnO₃ nanostructures to ethanol was studied. The results indicate that the as-synthesized samples exhibited high response and quick response-recovery to ethanol.     

Formaldehyde sensing properties of electrospun NiO-doped SnO2 nanofibers

Formaldehyde is a kind of hazardous gases dangerous to human health. Hence, gas sensor is an essential device to monitor formaldehyde in air, especially in indoor ambient. Semiconductor metal oxides are studied as gas-sensing material to detect most of key gases for decade years. For the purpose of actual application and meeting a variety of conditions, diverse additives added into host material are expected to improve the performance of gas sensors. The formaldehyde gas-sensing characteristics of undoped and NiO-doped SnO₂ (NSO) nanofibers synthesized via a simple electrospinning method were investigated in this study. It is noticed that the addition of NiO causes the distortion at the surface of SnO₂ nanofibers, which is responsible to adjust activation energy, grain sizes and chemical states of host material. The sensors fabricated from NSO nanofibers exhibited good formaldehyde sensing properties at operating temperature 200 °C, and the minimum-detection-limit was down to 0.08 ppm. The response time and recovery time of the sensors were about 50 s and 80 s to 10 ppm formaldehyde, respectively. The sensor shows a good long-term stability in 90 days. The simple preparation and excellent properties significantly advance the viability of electrospun nanofibers as gas sensing materials. The sensing mechanisms of NSO nanofibers to formaldehyde were discussed. The results indicated that NSO nanofibers could be used as a candidate to fabricate formaldehyde sensors in practice.     

Structural and gas-sensing properties of CuO-CuxFe3−xO4 nanostructured thin films

Nanocrystalline CuO-Cu_xFe_3−xO₄ thin films were developed using a radio-frequency sputtering method followed by a thermal oxidation process. Thin films were deposited applying two very different conditions by varying the argon pressure and the target-to-substrate distance. Structural, microstructural and gas-sensing characteristics were performed using grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GXRD), Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and electrical measurements. Their sensing properties were examined using hydrogen gas in dry synthetic air. The shortest response and recovery times were observed between 280 and 300 °C independently of the deposition conditions.     

Preparation and gas-sensing performance of In2O3 porous nanoplatelets

In₂O₃ porous nanoplatelets were successfully synthesized by solvothermal treatment of indium acetylacetonate, followed by calcination in air. X-ray diffraction and Raman spectrum measurements demonstrate that the products are pure cubic phase In₂O₃. Scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy analyses reveal that the In₂O₃ nanoplatelets bounded by {1 1 0} planes with thickness less than 6 nm and length about 20-50 nm are single crystalline but with porous structure. The optical absorption property of the In₂O₃ nanoplatelets was investigated by UV-vis spectroscopy, which indicates that the In₂O₃ nanoplatelets are semiconducting with a direct band gap of 3.1 eV. The gas sensing performance of the as-prepared In₂O₃ porous nanoplatelets was investigated towards a series of typical organic solvents and fuels. It was found that the In₂O₃ porous nanoplatelets show structure-induced enhancement of gas sensing performance, and especially possess high sensitivity and rapid response towards ethanol vapor.     

Hydrothermal synthesis of hollow ZnSnO3 microspheres and sensing properties toward butane

Hollow ZnSnO₃ microspheres were successfully prepared by hydrothermal method at 160 °C for 12 h. The prepared material was characterized by field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM) and X-ray diffraction measurements (XRD). The average diameter of the hollow ZnSnO₃ microspheres was in the range of 400-600 nm. Compared with solid ZnSnO₃ microspheres structure, the hollow ZnSnO₃ microspheres showed better response (S) to butane. To 500 ppm butane, the sensor response (S) of the hollow ZnSnO₃ microspheres was 5.79 at the optimum operating temperature of 380 °C, and the response and recovery time were 0.3 s and 0.65 s, respectively. The sensitivities of sensors based on this material were linear with the concentration of butane in the range of 100-1000 ppm.     

Characterization and gas sensitivity study of polyaniline/SnO2 hybrid material prepared by hydrothermal route

A polyaniline (PAni)/SnO₂ hybrid material was prepared by a hydrothermal method and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). The XRD pattern suggested that PAni did not modify the crystal structure of SnO₂, but SnO₂ affected the crystallization of PAni to some extent. The gas sensitivity of the PAni/SnO₂ hybrid was also studied to ethanol and acetone at operation temperatures of 30, 60 and 90 °C. It was found that the PAni/SnO₂ hybrid material had gas sensitivity only when operated at 60 and 90 °C, and it showed a linear relationship between the responses and the concentrations of ethanol and acetone at 90 °C. The sensing mechanism was also discussed.